PS-101 – Preparing for

Your Success

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

The Pressure-sensitive Label Construction

Module 4: Adhesives

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Features

• Coating Technology

• Adhesive Chemistry

• Adhesive Selection Criteria & End Use

Pressure-Sensitive Adhesive

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

> A pressure-sensitive

adhesive is generally a

soft, viscous (has flow

abilities) material that is

sticky to the touch.

When applied to a

substrate with slight

pressure, the adhesive

will begin to flow into the

surface.

Adhesive Technology

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Adhesive Technology

Pressure Sensitive Adhesives

Hot Melt Solvent Emulsion

Rubber

Perm Rem

Rubber Acrylic

Perm Rem Perm Rem

Acrylic

Perm Rem

Three Primary Coating Technologies (how the adhesive is applied to the liner):

Hot Melt – Solvent – Emulsion

Two Primary Adhesive Bases (what the adhesive is made of):

Acrylic Based and Rubber Based

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

TECHNOLOGY CHARACTERISTICS

Hot Melt

Coated in molten state. Typically lowest cost method. Typically not suitable for film constructions. Yellowish tint. Primarily rubber based adhesives.

Solvent

Coated as a solvent solution. Environmental costs. Robust performance. Provides and maintains high clarity. Rubber and Acrylic adhesives

Emulsion

Coated with components suspended in water. Provides and maintains high clarity. A wide range of performance is available. Primarily acrylic based adhesives.

Coating Technologies

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

ADVANTAGES:

• High initial tack

• Excellent long term adhesion

• High affinity to low energy substrates

(plastic containers)

DISADVANTAGES:

• Narrow service temperature range

• Poor solvent resistance

• Poor UV stability

• Yellow in color

• Potential for poor wide web converting

ADVANTAGES:

• Wide service temperature range

• Good solvent resistance (solvent)

• Good UV stability (solvent)

• Excellent clarity

• Excellent long term adhesion

• May be repositionable (emulsion)

• Excellent wide web converting

DISADVANTAGES:

• Medium initial tack

• Less affinity to low energy substrates.

vs.

Rubber versus Acrylic Based

Adhesive Performance

Rubber Based

Hot Melt and Solvent Technology

Acrylic Based Solvent and/or Emulsion Technology

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives

• Permanent - Label cannot be removed without damage to the

label or substrate

• Removable - Label can be removed at a desired time without

damage to the label or substrate

• Specialty - Designed for specific end-use requirement

› Heavy Coat Weight “B” / Light Coat Weight “A”

› Pattern Gum

› Photoluminescence

› Repositionable / Ultra-Removable

› All Temperature / Cold Temperature

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Trademarked Brands and Product Names

Avery, Avery Dennison, and Fasson are trademarks

or service marks of Avery Dennison Corporation.

All other brands and product names are trademarks

of their respective companies.

Use of these images is intended to demonstrate applications

for Avery Dennison products and services. This display does

not indicate affiliation, sponsorship, approval or endorsement

by the manufacturers of the products and the owners of

non-Avery Dennison brands.

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

The Pressure-sensitive Label Construction

Module 5: Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Adhesive Selection Guide

> What surface will the labels be

applied to?

» Surface composition

» Contour

» Texture

> Does the label need to be

permanent or removable?

> What are the conditions in which the

labels are being applied?

» Moisture and/or high humidity

» Temperature

» Unusually dusty or dirty

» Clean room

> How will the labels be applied?

» Auto applied or by hand

» How fast will they be applied?

» Repositionability required?

» For how long?

> What are the exposure conditions?

» Outdoor (vertical or horizontal)

» Chemicals

» Abrasion

» Surface protection required?

How is the label applied? How is

the label being used?

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Are there special application or exposure conditions the label

must withstand? Minimum Application Temperature

Lowest temperature at which the label is applied to the substrate

Service Temperature

Temperature range that the label will be exposed to over its expected lifetime

Hot Fill and Fresh Bottle Labeling

Requires special facestock/adhesive combination

Storage Conditions

Ideally should be 50%RH and 72ºF

Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

It is important to identify the exact type of substrate being used.

Plastic as a description is not enough.

The level of adhesion will vary with the type of “plastic” being used.

Adhesive Selection Guide

PET Polyethylene terephthalate 2 Liter soft drink bottles, crystal clear squeezable

bottles

HDPE High density polyethylene Milk jug bottles, colored semi rigid bottles

PVC Vinyl (Polyvinyl chloride) Vinyl binders, bags

LDPE Low density polyethylene Plastic bags

PP Polypropylene Diapers, straws

PS Polystyrene Expanded foam, casings for compact disks,

components for copiers

O, MR Multi-Resin & other Plastics

Plastic

Type Plastic Description Examples

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Adhesive Selection Guide - Surface Energy

High Surface Energy

Kapton®

Phenolic Alkyd Enamel

Polyester Epoxy paint

High Surface Energy Plastics

ABS Polycarbonate

PVC Acrylic Noryl®

Low Surface Energy Plastics

Polystyrene EVA Polyethylene Nylon

Polypropylene Tedlar®

Teflon®

Copper Aluminum Zinc

Lead Stainless Steel Glass

• Ability of the adhesive to 'wet out' over the surface of a material

• Low-surface energy materials prohibit wet out (beads of water on a waxed car)

• High-surface energy materials have excellent wet out and provide best adhesion

• Rubber based adhesives generally offer better adhesion to low surface energy substrates

• May require special treatment (Corona treatment; primers; top coatings)

• On some low surface energy materials, adhesion levels will improve with longer dwell times

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

What is the texture of the substrate (the surface to which

the label will be applied)?

A rough surface may require a stronger bonding adhesive or a heavier

adhesive coat weight to achieve acceptable adhesion

*** Remember, adhesion to any substrate is achieved by the adhesive flowing into all

areas of the substrate and “bonding” with them

Adhesive

Substrate

Facestock

Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

What is the shape of the substrate surface?

Curved Surfaces

Containers with less than 1” in diameter require a highly aggressive adhesive – one that

adheres quickly and will not lift on the edges – and a flexible facestock.

A wrap around (overlap) label may be preferable for very small diameter labeling. This

type of application also requires flexible facestocks and high tack adhesives. Do not

apply varnish at the overlap!

Compound Curves

Will require a special label shape and a flexible facestock for conformability to the

surface. Film generally performs better for compound curves.

Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Is the application surface clean or contaminated?

Contaminated Surfaces

Adhesion problems due to contaminated surfaces are often a major cause of pressure

sensitive failing to perform as expected or tested.

Typical Contaminates: Oil, grease, dust, dirt, moisture, ice, even fingerprints. All keep

the adhesive from touching the actual surface!

Mold Release Agents: Another typical contaminate seen when labeling “plastic” and

glass containers.

Consider the use of wrap around (overlap) labels where contamination

is present and cannot be removed.

Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Are there any plasticizers present that will

deteriorate the adhesive properties?

Plasticizer:

This is a component used in vinyl which controls the degree of softness or pliability

of the vinyl. A highly plasticized vinyl will be very soft and pliable while a low

plasticized vinyl will be very stiff.

» A plasticizer in contact with some adhesives will degrade adhesive

bond strength. It may be necessary to use a plasticizer resistant

adhesive. Pre-testing is always advisable by accelerated aging when

the existence of plasticizers are suspected.

Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Are there any special application and/or exposure conditions

that the label must withstand?

Special Conditions

Temperature extremes, outdoor weather exposure, ultra-violet light exposure, sterilization

processes.

Questions to consider

» Will the label be exposed to large amounts of moisture? If so, a moisture resistant

facestock should be selected.

» Will there be prolonged exposure to ultra-violet light? Long term exposure to U.V.

light deteriorates rubber based adhesives. Special adhesives may be needed if

transparent facestocks are to be used or the labels are to last an exceptionally long

time. Concentrated U.V. exposure will also affect the graphics on the label so this

consideration is particularly important where long label life is desired.

» Will the label be exposed to elevated temperatures above +200 F for an extended

period? If so, an acrylic adhesive combined with film or foil may be required.

Adhesive Selection Guide

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

Trademarked Brands and Product Names

Avery, Avery Dennison, and Fasson are trademarks

or service marks of Avery Dennison Corporation.

All other brands and product names are trademarks

of their respective companies.

Use of these images is intended to demonstrate applications

for Avery Dennison products and services. This display does

not indicate affiliation, sponsorship, approval or endorsement

by the manufacturers of the products and the owners of

non-Avery Dennison brands.

PS 101 – Preparing for Your Success Confidential—For Internal Use Only

© 2011 Avery Dennison Corporation. All rights reserved. Avery Dennison and all other Avery brands, product names and codes ar e trademarks of Avery Dennison

Corporation. All other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners. Fortune 500 is a trademark of Time , Inc. Personal and company names and

other information on samples depicted are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual names and addresses is purely coincidental .

Revised May 2011